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February 6, 2006
"Assassination Vacation" by Sarah Vowell
Sarah Vowell, the mousey-voiced contributor to NPR's "This American Life" and voice of Violet in "The Incredibles" is a nerd when it comes to presidential assassinations. "Assassination Vacation" is a collection of historical tidbits about the murders of presidents Lincoln, McKinley and Garfield. It's a fascinating read for history buffs and even for those who only have a casual interest in presidential history and forensics.
Vowell visits all sorts of crazy sites related to the assassinations including the National Museum of Health and Medicine which contains fragments of Lincoln's skull and the Museum of Funeral Customs which is just a short walk from Lincoln's tomb in Springfield, IL. Along the way, she tells the story of the assassinations and the characters that are involved in them. Lincoln's son Robert, for example, was in the vicinity of all three presidents when they were killed. It's such a weird coincidence that Vowell refers to him as Jinxy McDeath. Stranger still is the fact that John Wilkes Booth's brother Edwin saved Robert's life during the war when Robert fell off a train platform next to a slowly-moving train and was pulled out of the gap by Booth. The book is full of interesting stories like these and Vowell comes across as an expert in the telling.
Along the way, Vowell isn't afraid to criticize the current administration and make some connections between the present war in Iraq and McKinley's preemptive Spanish-American war. Later in the book she likens the squalid conditions that a Booth co-conspirator faced at a prison in Dry Tortugas, FL to the torture of prisoners at Abu Ghraib (which isn't as far-fetched as it probably sounds).
Although Vowell wanders off-topic often, this humorous and entertaining book is a quick and enjoyable read for anyone who has even a slight interest in history. I just hope that she someday writes a sequel about the fourth (and still taboo?) presidential assassination of John F. Kennedy.
Posted on February 6, 2006 at 8:12 PM
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Comments
I agree - it's a great book. I recommend listening to her read it if you have the chance - it's fun to hear her. I'd also recommend the musical version, so to speak - Assassins - if you get the chance. (My wife played for a pit orchestra, so I've seen it - besides having it on my iPod!)
Posted by: Joel at February 6, 2006 10:39 PM